The Things They Say
by Nalana
Summary: The world is not always kind to things they don't understand. How do you live in that world? If you're lucky, with the support of others. Warning: deals with social homophobia. Rating for sensitivity of subject matter.


Disclaimer: I don't own any of the recognizable characters or the universe. I'm not making money.

A/N: This was written back in December, but has been an idea brewing in my mind for a long time. It was my way of coping with things I was hearing being said around me from people I couldn't imagine saying such things. It's not meant to offend anyone. That being said, it deals with issues that some may be uncomfortable with. Thanks to StarHawk for looking over this for me and talking me into posting this.

* * *

Mrs. Stevens stood in the doorframe looking in at the lesson before her. Her son as well as four other students his age demonstrated their newest lesson nearly flawlessly. From around them their instructor circled, offering compliments and advice. When they had moved through the final movements the instructor clapped approvingly as the students voluntarily bowed to one another.

"Very good. You're all doing great! I'm sure you'll all do well at the championship next weekend if you keep on practicing." The instructor praised before dismissing his class.

Mrs. Stevens walked in as the other kids started gathering their backpacks. Her son was engaged in conversation with the teacher. She was proud Jimmy was so enthusiastic about this. When he had asked to start martial arts lessons six years ago she had been doubtful. But she had seen him flourish because of it. Truth be told, she had his sensei to thank for it.

"Jimmy." She called, catching her son's attention, sad to interrupt. "You looked good there, not that I really know all that much." Jimmy mumbled his parent's title, embarrassed, as any other teenager would be.

"Well you seem to have good enough judgment. He's one of my most promising students." His sensei interjected before looking to his student. " I'm not just saying this. I really think you're ready to move on to the next level."

"Really?" His eyes lit up. His mother smiled.

"Jimmy why don't you meet me by the car." She prompted, before tossing him the keys. He had recently gotten his driving permit. "I'll let you drive home."

"You know, Mr. Rhodes…" She started when he had left.

"Mrs. Stevens, we've been through this, call me Casey." He smiled at her honestly.

"It's Mr. Rhodes." She poked him in the chest playfully. "Anyone who deserves respect should be addressed formally. And you have done more then earn mine. What you and Mrs. Martin have done for this community with this school…I just wanted to thank you again."

"Well, you're more than welcome. We love doing it." He offered. Mrs. Stevens smiled and turned to head towards the door.

"Oh! And by the way," she stopped, "Do you know if there's room in Mrs. Martin's beginner's ballroom class? I've roped my husband into saying he'd give it a shot."

Casey laughed whole heartily. "I'll talk to Lily. I'm sure she can find room even if it is booked."

"I'll let him know the bad news then." Jimmy's mother jested. Another mother, a former classmate of her own, was waiting at the doorway waiting for her own son to get read. "Hello, Marsha."

"Hello, Trish." She heard a near zombied voice respond but brushed it off without a second thought.

A few days later Trisha Stevens found herself at a dinner party of mothers. Her friend had dragged her into the whole business. The gathering had been arranged by a gaggle of women who worked together in an office down town. Among the faces were a couple of her own co-workers and the woman she had greeted when she went to pick up Jimmy.

The chatter was formal, and light hearted. Nothing too serious was discussed. Trisha found herself operating in polite mood, warding off boredom and irritability as best she could. Clearly these girls were double faced. Each simple question and response was being equally measured as she could feel greasy fingers reaching out for some juicy tid bit to throw around the rumor mill come Monday morning.

"So, Trish. I hear your son is doing well. Isn't he set for that karate contest next week?" One of the girls asked, picking up a card from the pile before them.

"Yes. It's more than karate, actually. Several forms are being demonstrated." She chipped in.

"Of course." Another added like it was common knowledge, not worth saying. "He's in the same course with your son, right Marsh?"

"Yes. Richie and him do quite well." The mother was sure to point out her own offspring's achievement.

"That Rhodes fellow runs the place, doesn't he?" Another mother inquired.

"Mm-hmm." Marsha added. The woman who asked made a settling noise as she exhaled, obviously uncomfortable.

"Mr. Rhodes is a fine instructor. He's quite qualified, and the kids seem to take to him. Jimmy looks up to him a lot." Trisha added to his defense.

"Well, yes, Trish but...aren't you a little…well…" the cautious woman's voice lowered, "concerned?" Mrs. Stevens was completely baffled.

"About what?"

"Well…he might leave a bit too much of an impression. Jimmy is a rather…sensitive…boy." Marsha offered gingerly, as if picking up the trail from the other woman. "I mean, Richie does fine but certainly he keeps his distance."

"Marsha, what on earth are you talking about?" Trisha set down her cards. Her friend fixed the order of hers.

"Well you know Mr. Rhodes adopted that little girl with the owner of that pizza place a couple years ago." She offered in a tone that was slightly secretive, but too pointedly informed.

"I always knew there was something a little…off…about that man, the shop owner." One of Trisha's coworkers piped up. "One of the ones you could tell just by seeing him, you know."

"Mmm-hmm." The first suspicious woman added. "It never settled right with me. There was always something a little strange…We haven't gone down there in years."

"Ladies!" Trisha blinked, confused. "What does Casey's personal life have to do with any of this?" The use of his first name did not go unnoticed by the other women. There was a glitchy freeze in their moments in expressions before they moved about, flustered.

"Oh nothing of course!" One woman offered.

"Of course. I've ALWAYS said what happens behind closed doors shouldn't matter. As long as what you keep in your bed stays there, I don't see a possible problem." Marsha offered.

"Yes, but, you know how they can be just a little…" one woman wiggled her eyebrows. She didn't need to say promiscuous for it to be clearly read. Trisha crossed her arms, looking shocked by the others.

"I just personally think that no one should force their lifestyle on any young person. What with all the media these things have gotten, young people are almost pressured into being _that way_." Marsha rationalized. "And that daughter of theirs…why both of them are constantly working. It's not healthy!"

Trisha's jaw dropped a little. She couldn't believe the words she was hearing. These were from people she'd never think she'd hear this from. After all, their state was infamous for being more accepting of alternate lifestyles. Well, at least the younger generations. That only didn't excuse one of the conversing members here.

"Are you suggesting that having Mr. Rhodes teaching my son is going to make Jimmy gay?" She said flat out. No one dared to speak.

"I'm just a little concerned of how…attached…he is. We're just thinking of your son's health, Trish dear."

"Oh, Marsha!" Mrs. Stevens leaned back in her chair, unsure where to begin. "I don't know how you rationalize that, but as far as I'm concerned I see no problem in Mr. Rhodes being a role model for my son. He's an upstanding community member who has given his time to help our children! I sincerely doubt he has any kind of secret agenda up his sleeve!"

"As far as my son goes, he is not your concern. And though I appreciate it, I hardly think that looking up to someone who is gay even remotely dangerous. I hardly imagine that he will be 'affected' as you so put it. " She huffed, passing in her hand and excusing herself from the table.

"It has happened, though. There's been proof." One woman yelled after her. "My nephew's—"

"So..Does that mean, since your son now lives with his father who is an alcoholic he'll start drinking too? Or that since your brother's a defense lawyer your daughter will follow in his footsteps? Or that because one person's husband cheated on them, the person sitting next to you's partner will?" Trisha said evenly, clearly mad but still containing herself. "Excuse me ladies, I have a terrible head ache.

Jimmy swallowed. He could almost feel the tension in the room. Nearly every parent had stayed for every lesson today. His own mother had come. Though she had neglected looking at one of her older friends. He had heard her venting to his father after she had come home this weekend. And while he could see why she was mad, he wasn't sure why she had been so shocked. More importantly, he looked up at Casey who was finishing giving instructions to one of his students, had he heard the silent debates that had sprung up over telephones over the past few days?

The student sighed finishing up putting away the equipment around him. He had taken up to helping around the dojo and with younger lessons in trade for his own lessons. He didn't like making his parents pay. He liked responsibility. He was lost in his own thoughts.

"Scrubbing a little hard there. I think it's clean by now." His sensei's voice broke his train of thought. "What's on your mind?"

"Huh? Oh…nothing." Jimmy shook his head moving to the next window.

"Nothing? That's a horrible lie. You forget. I have a five year old at home. The half hearted 'no I didn't eat the cookie' voice doesn't work so much anymore." His attempt at humor nearly made the other tiger spirit smile.

"It's just… He turned away from the dozens of parental eyes that were on them. "You've heard them right?"

"Heard them what?" Casey crossed his arms.

"The way they talk about you, about your family."

"Yea, I have." Casey leaned on a wall. "And?"

"AND? You're not mad?" Jimmy was shocked at how calm the other tiger was.

"Of course I am." Casey made no effort to whisper, but he wasn't an exhibitionist. "But you get used to it. People are always going to hang onto their personal opinions and beliefs. And when it runs over into your life, it sucks. It really, really, sucks. But what's more important is that you live your life as an honest person and try to show that. If people still don't want to believe you, it's their problem."

"…I don't understand." Jimmy let his arms hang.

"Look, when R.J. and I adopted Saana, we weren't really together. We just both fell in love with her and didn't want to see her put into foster care. Now I'm not saying we came together because of her, she just gave us a reason to. Life was too complicated to get involved before then. Just look at Lily and Theo. They're proof of that."

"But people assumed what they wanted to. The JKP saw fewer customers for a while. It saw some new faces too. But when the heat dissipated a lot of the old crew came back. Now, we are together, and plan on staying that way. People complain that we're too open, that having two guys as parents isn't healthy. Or there are people shooting them down saying it's just the same as any other family."

"But, she's got two loving parents. She has her honorary aunts around for when she needs a little feminine support…because, lets face it, we're men. There are just some things we don't like to handle. So yes, she has some similar supports as so-called normal households. Does that mean we're the nuclear family? No. People who matter to us know this, they get it. People who don't live in their worlds of morals and triggers. People are always going to question things they don't, won't, or can't comprehend and things they think they're experts in. But you can't let that get to you."

"Besides. If we hid ourselves, wouldn't they have more of a reason to have unrealistic fears?" Casey suggested, shrugging his shoulders.

Jimmy nodded. It was still a lot to deal with. He wasn't sure he understood it himself. But the evidence of everything was in front of him. His mothers' defensive attitude, the uncomfortable shuffles from the parents who had been eavesdropping, even Casey's own little act of rebellion were proof. This world was still screwed up.

"Look, Jimmy." Casey touched his arm, distracting him. "I've also heard the other stuff. What they're saying about you. I want to let you know, if any of this makes you feel uncomfortable, I know a couple people who would love to train you instead."

"No way!" Jimmy snapped out of his confusion. "Let them think what they want. There's no way I'm leaving the best sensei in Ocean's Bluff!"

Casey smiled, nodding. Maybe there was hope yet. After all, there was proof in growth. Mrs. Stevens' support was astounding. The way tongues were wagging about her, ranging from her having a secret crush on him to being a closeted lesbian herself, he could only imagine what she said. Either way she had gotten his trust. Jimmy's own standing against the local rumor mill made him proud. Casey liked to think that his own oddity of a family was making a little bit of a change. Sometimes, all it took was making people face their fears a few people with a lot of guts, and but a of patience.

No. Scratch that. A hell of a lot of patience.

"Ready to go?" Casey turned to Mrs. Stevens' voice as she beckoned her son. Jimmy nodded, giving a wave to Casey on his way out. He nodded back, catching Trisha's smile in his direction. He smiled back. There really was hope.


End file.
